Figure



March 3, 1964 c. A. ADKlNsoN, JR., ETAL 3,123,186

WALL CONSTRUCTION FOR SHELTER Filed April 19, 1960 n 5 sheets-sheet 1 March 3, 1964 Filed April 19, 1960 C. A. ADKINSON, JR., ETAL WALL CONSTRUCTION FOR SHELTER 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 1N ENToRS. amy.

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United States Patent O 3,123,186 WALL CONSTRUCTION FOR SHELTER Charles A. Adkinson, Jr., Dayton, Ohio, John S. Brooks,

Redondo, Wash., and Alfred L. Marcum, Jr., Centerville, Ohio, assignors to Aeronca ManufacturingCorporation, Middletown, Ohio, a corporation of Oino Filed Apr. 19, 1960, Ser. No. 23,252 5 Claims. (Cl. 189-34) This invention relates to portable buildings and in particular is directed to a novel wall construction for' lightweight, air transportable, prefabricated shelter units.

In recent years there has developed an increasing demand for lightweight prefabricated shelters than can be transported to remote areas by helicopter. Such shelters are particularly useful as military equipment shelters for housing electronic communication equipment, radar apparatus, and other electronic equipment. In many cases it is desirable to mount this equipment in the shelter before it is transported so that when the shelter is delivered it is already fully equipped and ready to be placed in operation.

The very nature of the intended service for these prefabricated shelters has imposed service requirements on the units. In the first place, the units must be quite rugged and able to withstand very rough handling without appreciable damage. However, this ruggedness cannot be obtained at the expense of lightness; for the electronic gear mounted within the units provides a substantial initial weight so that the weight of the shelter itself must be kept to an absolute minimum. Another desideratum is that shelter must have extremely high thermal insulative properties, since the shelters must be adopted for use in locations having either very high or low temperatures. The thermal insulation of the shelter is particularly critical when the shelter is used in a cold climate, for many types of electronic equipment are adversely affected by the formation of frost or condensation on adjacent walls.

In the recent past, several different types of air transportable shelters have been proposed. None of these shelters has proven to be completely satisfactory. Many prior shelters have weighed an excessive amount and still have not proved to be sufficiently durable or to have the requisite degree of thermal insulation. Another difficulty with prior art shelters has been that it has been cumbersome to mount equipment within the shelter. This difficulty is exceptionally objectionable in the field where it required special tools to change the mounting of any of the electronic or other equipment.

The principal object of the present invention has been to provide a prefabricated portable shelter which will combine maximum ruggedness and thermal insulation with minimum weight.

More particularly, the present invention contemplates a Prefabricated unitary shelter having four side walls and integral top and bottom walls. Each of the walls is of sandwich construction, the top and bottom panels preferably being of the honeycomb core type, while the side walls have a foamed plastic core. In accordance with the present invention, the side wall structure also partially embedded in the wall and extend inwardly therefrom.

One preferred form of beam is an aluminum extrusion in the form of a modified I-beam. In cross section this beam comprises a web and two transverse end anges similar to a conventional I-beam. However, the present modified I-beam also includes an intermediate transverse flange positioned for attachment to the inner skin of the sandwich panel.

Each I-beam extends partially through the wall from the inside panel, with the inner flange embedded in the foam intermediate the inner and outer skins. The intermediate flange abuts the inner skin and is joined to the skin as by means of rivets or a suitable adhesive. The remaining portion of the Web and inner flange extend inwardly from the inner skin and project a substantial distance, for example, two inches into the shelter.

One of the principal advantages of the present wall is that it is extremely lightweight and yet is adapted to support large loads. The modified I-beams, or studs, are eective to transmit a major portion of the concentrated load to the floor and ceiling structures. A portion of the load is also transmitted and carried by the wall. Both the center flange in abutment with the inner skin and the embedded inner ange resist torsional bending or twisting of the beam. This ready handling of large concentrated loads by the beam structure is coupled with the utility of the sandwich panel to withstand impact loads, such as those i cident to transporting of the shelter.

A further advantage of the present wall construction is that heat transfer across the wall is minimized since the studs do not extend through the wall. Foam is an. excellent insulator and in the present Wall structure there is no through metallic path from the outer panel to the inner panel, but rather a layer of foam of substantial thickness is always interposed between the outer skin and the inner skin and metallic studs. This substantially uniform insulation eliminates condensation and frost patterns which might otherwise tend to hamper operation of the electronic equipment.

A still further advantage of the present wall construction is that it greatly facilitates mounting of equip ment. Electronic and other equipment can be mounted directly on the inwardly extending portions of the I-beams with conventional fasteners, such as bolts and the like, without the need for special clips or blind fasteners.

Another advantage of the present wall construction is that the inward protrusion of the I-beams inherently spaces the equipment from the inner wall skin. This provides natural Ventilation for the equipment and also provides space for air ducts, cable runs and the like.

A still further advantage of the present wall construction is that it is modular in nature. The present wall construction facilitates the standardization of electronic shelters since the interior arrangement may be includes a plurality of spaced vertical beams or studs readily modified without special tools and many different sizes of shelter can be constructed by merely altering the number of modules of wall units, i.e., the number of studs and intermediate inner skin sections.

These and other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily apparent from a consideration of the following detailed description of the drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE l is a perspective View of a preferred form of shelter constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a partial perspective View of the interior of the shelter.

3 FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional View taken along line 3-3 of 4FIGURE 2.

FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional View through a slightly modified form of wall construction.

FIGURE 5 is a partial elevational view of one wall of the shelter showingthe manner of attachment of intercOStal support members.

FIGURE 6 is a cross-sectional View taken along line e's`5 of FIGURE 5.

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged fragmentary front view of the joint between'one stud and an intercostal member.

The overall construction of a preferred form of prefabricated shelter l@ constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention is best shown in FEGURES l and 2. As there shown, the shelter comprises opposed side Walls 11 and 12, -a rear wall `13 and a front wall 1d, a roof 1S and a floor 16 joined together to 4form an integral enclosure of generally rectangular cross section. The front wall is provided with a door 17 for permitting access to the interior of the shelter.

A plurality of longitudinally extending I-beam or closed box beam skid members 13 are mounted beneath the floor member 16. Four hoisting eyes 2b are provided at the upper corners of the shelter and are adapted for securance to cables or other hoisting members. The overall weight of the present shelter is approximately 900 pounds so that the shelter can readily be transported by helicopter and thus delivered to remote and inaccessible areas.

In a preferred embodiment, the roof and floor members 'l5 and ite are of a honeycomb sandwich type. As is shown in FIGURE 2, floor 16 comprises a bottom facing 21 and a top facing 22. Facing 21 is preferably, Ibut not necessarily, stainless steel, while facing 22 is an aluminum alloy. These facings are bonded to a phenolic impregnated paper honeycomb core 23. The roof similarly comprises an outer aluminum alloy facing 24, an inner aluminum alloy facing 25 and a honeycomb paper core 26. The cores of both the roof and floor are filled with a medium density rigid polyurethane foam in areas adjacent to the points of attachment of side walls 11 and 12 and front and rear walls 14 and 13.

Each of the side walls 11 and 12 and rear and Vfront Walls i3 and 14 in the preferred embodiment comprises an outer facing or skin 27, a spaced inner skin 23 and a core 3Q; `One suitable form of outer facing is an aluminum sheet .032 thick; while a suitable inner facing material is an aluminum sheet .020 thick. One suitable form of core 3ft is a semi rigid, foamed in place, polyurethane foam having a nominal density of two pounds per cubic foot. One suitable wall thickness is one and one-half inches.

Outer skin 27 preferably comprises a single sheet which extends over the whole length and height of each of the side walls. However, inner skin 28 preferably comprises a plurality of panels, each panel extending between one pair of vertical beams or studs 31.

One preferred form of stud 31 is shown in FIGURE 3 and a second preferred form is shown in FIGURE 4. As is shown in FiGUR'E 3, each stud 31 is an extrusion made from a suitable metal, such as an aluminum alloy. Each stud 31 is in the shape of a modified I-beam and includes a yweb 32, an outer iiange 33 extending at right angles to the web and an inner .flange 34, which also extends at right angles to the web. In addition, modified I-beam 31 includes an intermediate transverse flange 35 which extends parallel to tianges 33 and 34 intermediate the two. Preferably, the distance between outer flange 33 and intermediate flange 35 is equal to substantially onehalf of the side wall thickness. In the preferred embodiment shown, flanges 33 and 34 are of the same length, while intermediate flange 35 is of substantially the same length or slightly shorter.

Modified `I-beams 31 extend vertically from floor member 16 to roof member 15. The I-beams are preferably inner and outer skins 28 and 27 which equally spaced along the walls. beams are placed on 2d or 21 centers which distance is slightly greater than the width of a standard electronic equipment chassis. It will, .of course, be understood that this distance is not critical and the beams could be spaced closer together or further apart if desired.

As -is 'shown in yFIGURE 3, each of the I-beams is partially embedded in its associated wall. Specifically, the I-beams -31 are mounted so that outer ange 33 and that portion37 of web 32 between the intermediate flange 33' and outer ange 33 is disposed between inner and outer wall skins 28 and 27. Intermediate flange 35 abuts the inner wall panels 28 and the portion of flange 33 on each side of web-32 is secured to a panel in any suitable way as by means of rivets 36, as shown in FIGURE 3, or by means of a suitable adhesive, or the like. During assembly, the innerpanels 28 and beams 31 are first assembled together. Then foam 3f? is poured between the are held apart in any suitable manner. The foam adheres both to the wall skins and to the embedded portions of the I-beams. Thus, thefoarn coacts with outer fiange 33 and inner skins 28 cooperate with intermediate flange 35 to resist pivotal movements of the beams. It will be appreciated that each pair of beams 31 and the intermediate panel 2S constitute a modular unit. Thus, walls of varying lengths can be readily made by merely increasing or decreasing the number of I-beams 31 and panels 28.

It is further to be noted that yI-beams 31 do not extend completely through the wall. Thus, there is a thick strip 38 of insulating foam between the outer anges 33 of the `I-beams and outer wall panel 27. This layer of foam provides effective thermal insulation, helping to minimize heat transfer through the walls. Also, the absence of through metal paths from the interior to the exterior of the `walls tends to prevent any frost or` condensation patterns.

As is shown in FIGURE 2, the vertical I-beams are joined to the floor and ceiling members by any suitable vmeans such 'as bolts passing through lflanges provided on the ends of .I-beams 3-1. These flanges extend perpendioular to the axis of the beams and are provided with suitable openings for receiving bolts which extend through the floor and ceiling panels.

LEIGURE 4 shows a wall incorporating a slightly modified form of .IL-beam 41. This Ia-beam includes a web 42 tand outer and inner flanges 43 and 44. I-beam 41 also includes two intermediate flanges 45 and 46. Intermediate flanges 4S and 46 extend transversely of web 42pmlallel to anrges f3A and 44. Intermediate flanges 45 and 46 are spaced slightly from one another to define vertical slots 47 on each side of web 42. 1

The Wall shown in -EIGURE 4 also includes a continuous outer panel 27, Va plurality of inner panels or skins 2S, and `a core 36 identical with the conresponding elements of the wall shown in FIGURE 3. The vertical edges of panels 28 are inserted in slots 47 of yI-beams 41 and are held in place by means of any suitable adhesive. The 'spacing between outer ange 43 and slots 27 is 'preferably equal to substantially one-half the wall thickness. Thus, like I-beams 31, I-beanrs 41 extend only approximately half way through the side walls and project a substantial distance into the interior of the shelter.

FIGURE 4 `also shows a preferred form of corner joint 48 between side wall -12 and rear wall 13. As there shown, the outer skin 27 of the side wall 12 and the outer skin 27 of rear wall l13l are joined by a curved corner piece Sil', the edges Vof which o'verlie and are riveted or otherwise secured to the outer edges of facin-gs 27. The vend beams 51 Vof side wall `12. and rear wall 413 are half I-beaims. Specifically, each of the half I-bearns 511comprises a web 52, anouter flange 53, and an inner ange 54. Flanges 54 Iarejoined by an angle member '59 which is riveted or otherwise secured to the flanges. Additionally, each of the half I-beams 5l includes two spaced Advantageously, the

intermediate flanges 55 and 56 which extend transversely of web 52. IFlanges 55 and 5'6 extend outwardly from one side only of the web and are spaced from one another to define a Slot 57 similar to one of the slots 47 of labeam 41. Half `I-beams 51 are dimensioned so that the distance between outer flange 53 and inner flange 54 is the same as the distance between outer flange 43 and inner flange 44 `of lI-beams 41. Also, slot 57 is spaced from outer flanges 53 a distance equal to substantially one-half the thickness of the outer wall.

`As is best shown in :FIGURE 4, corner joint 48 further comprises an angle member 58. This angle member comprises two end flanges 60 and 61 interconnected by a diagonal section 62. End flanges 60 and 61 extend at right angles to one another and reside in abutment with the planar pieces of I-beam 51. \Flanges 60 and 61 are secured to the ll-beams in any suitable manner, such as by rivets 63, or by means of suitable adhesive. The ends of flanges 60 and 61 terminate a substantial distance from outer wall skins Z7 and corner piece 50 so that no through metal path is provided at the corner joints 48. Also, as is shown in FIGUR-E 4, the entire corner joint is filled with the same foam material which constitutes the core 3f) of the side and rear walls of the unit.

In the completed shelter, the chassis of electronic gear or other equipment, such as air conditioners for example, are Isecured directly to inner flanges 34 in any suitable way, such as by means of bolts or nuts. No special fastenens or hidden fasteners. are required. 'it will readily be appreciated that the rear portion of this equipment is spaced from `inner facing 28 by the length of web portion 64. ln one preferred embodiment, this web portion is approximately two inches long. Thus, there is an appreciable lair space behind the equipment to provide natural ventilation for cooling the equipment. This same space can also be utilized for cable runs, and the like. Also, by merely securing plates over the inner flanges 44 of adjacent Iabeams, a ductwork can be provided for a ventilator, or the like.

In the event that the equipment of a different width than the spacing of `I-beams 41 is to be installed, this can readily lbe accomplished by the use of intercostal members 65. The details of these members are shown in FIG- URES 5, 6 and 7. As there shown, intercostal members 65 are adapted to bridge the spacing between adjacent llbealms 41 so that equipment, which is narrower than the spacing between these I-beams, can readily be mounted on the wall structure.

One preferred form of intercost-al member comprises a generally U-shaped channel 65 having a vertical wall 66 and upper and lower horizontal flanges 67 and 68, Channel section 65 is of substantially the same width as the spacing between the adjacent edges of the inner flanges 44 of the two adjacent I-beams 41.

Two right angle members 70, having vertical flanges 71, are riveted or otherwise secured to channel section 65 and web portion 64. These angle members are thus effective to mount the intercostal members 65 to the stud members 41. Since these intercostal members are spaced a substantial distance from inner skins `28, equipment can readily Ibe mounted upon the intercostal members without the use of hidden fasteners, or special clips and when mounted the equipment will be spaced inwardly from the wall to provide space `for natural ventilation, cable runs, ductwork, and the like.

In use, the present shelter can initially be transported in any suitable manner, such as by truck, rail, or the like, then can be transported by helicopter by attaching cables to eyes 20. The shelter can either be preloaded with equipment, as explained above, or the shelter can be transported to its desired site and then the desired' equipment installed. The present shelter has proved to be extremely rugged in tests and has further proven to have exceptional thermal insulating properties.

From the above disclosure of the general principles of the present invention and a description of a preferred embodiment, those skilled in the art will readily comprehend various modifications to which the invention is susceptible. Thus, it is contemplated that the present wall structure embodying modified I-beams can also be used advantageously with walls in which the metal aluminum skins of the preferred embodiment are replaced with Fiberglas, or the like. It is further contemplated that the sandwich walls may utilize a core of other than foam plastic, for example, a honeycomb type of core.

Additionally, if a thicker wall section between any two vertical columns is desired due to the presence of doors, windows, cable entry boxes, fan installations, or the like, this thicker wall section can readily be provided simply by securing the inner panel 28 to inner flanges 34 (FIG- URE 3), or inner flanges 44 (FIGURE 4) instead of intermediate flanges 35 (FIGURE 3) or intermediate flanges S5 and 56 (FIGURE 4). In such a case, foam core material 30 fills the entire area between the inner panel 2S and outer panel 27.

Moreover, while the modified I-beam stud configuration disclosed as a preferred embodiment is particularly advantageous, it is contemplated that studs of other conflgurations, for example, studs of box cross section can be partially embedded in sandwich type walls to provide some of the advantageous results of the preferred I-beam construction. Therefore, we desire to be limited only by the scope of the following claims.

Having described our invention, we claim:

l. In a lightweight portable shelter comprising four side walls, a top wall and a bottom wall, the novel feature which comprises a side wall construction, said wall construction comprising an outer facing, an inner facing, said inner facing being constituted by a plurality of panels, and a lightweight cellular core disposed between said facings, said core being adhered to said facings to form a rigid wall, a plurality of vertically extending modified I- beams, each of said I-beams comprising a web, an inner transverse flange and an outer transverse flange disposed.

at opposite edges of said web, and an intermediate transverse flange disposed intermediate said inner and outer flanges, said intermediate flange of each of said I-beams being secured to an edge of one of said inner facing panels, said outer flange and a portion of said web intermediate said outer flange and said intermediate flange being embedded in said core, said inner flange and a portion of the web intermediate said inner flange and the intermediate flange projecting inwardly from said wall, whereby the inner flanges of said I-beams are adapted for mounting equipment.

2. In a lightweight portable shelter comprising four side walls, a top wall and a bottom wall, the novel feature which comprises a side wall construction, said wall construction comprising an outer facing, an inner facing, said inner facing being constituted by a plurality of panels, and a lightweight cellular core disposed between said facings, said core being adhered to said facings to form a rigid wall, a plurality of vertically extending modified Lbeams, each of said I-beams comprising a web, an inner transverse flange and an outer transverse flange disposed at opposite edges `of said web, and an intermediate transverse flange disposed intermediate said inner and outer flanges, said intermediate flange of each of said l-beams, being secured to an edge of one of said inner facing panels, said outer flange and a portion of said web intermediate said outer flange and said intermediate flange being embedded in said core, said outer flange being disposed substantially in the center of said core, said inner flange and a portion of the web intermediate said inner flange and the inner flange projecting inwardly from said wall, whereby the inner flanges of said I-beams are adapted for mounting equipment.

3. In a lightweight portable shelter comprising four side walls, atop wall and a bottom Wall, the novel feature which comprises a side wall construction, said wall coni? struction comprising an Valuminum outer facing, an aluminum inner facing, said vinner facing comprising a plurality of aluminum panels, and a semi-rigid plastic foam core disposed between said facings, said core being adhered to said facings to form a rigid wall, a plurality of vertically extending modied Lbeams, each of said i-beams comprising a web, an-inner transverse iiange and an outer transverse flange disposed at opposite edges of said web, and an intermediate transverse flange disposed intermediate said inner and outer iianges, said intermediate flange of each of said -beams being secured to one edge of one of said inner facing panels, said outer flange and a portion of said web intermediate said outer ilange and said intermediate ange being embedded in said core, said inner riange and a portion of the web intermediate said inner fiange and the inner flange projecting inwardly from said wall, the spacing between said intermediate ange and said outer flange being substantiaily equal to one-half of the thickness of said wall, whereby the inner anges of said 1-bearns are adapted for mounting equipment.

4. A wall construction for a portable shelter, said wall construction comprising an 'outer facing, an inner facing constituted by a piurality of panels, and a lightweight celiular core disposed between said facings, said core being adhered 'to said facings to form a rigid wail, a plurality of verticaily extending modied i-beams, each of said I-bearns comprising a web, an inner transverse flange and an outer transverse ange disposed at opposite edges of said web, and two spaced transverse flanges disposed intermediate'said inner and outer flanges and defining a vertical slot therebetween, one edge of a vertical panel being disposed in each of the slots between said intermediate -anges and being secured thereto, said outer flange and a portion of said web intermediate said outer flange and said intermediate ange being embedded in said core, said inner flange and a portion of the web intermediate said inner ange and the inner flange projecting inwardly from said wall, whereby the inner fianges of said I-beams are adapted for mounting equipment.

5. A wall construction fora portable shelter, said wall construction comprising an outer facing, an inner facing constituted by a piurality of panels, and a lightweight cellular core disposed between said facings, said core being adhered to said facings to forni a rigid wall, a plurality of vertically extending modified I-beams, cach of said I-beams comprising a web, an inner transverse flange and an outer transverse ange disposed at opposite edges of said web, and two spaced transverse fianges disposed intermediate said inner and outer anges and dening a vertical slot therebetween, one edge of a vertical panel being disposed in each of the slots between said intermediate f1anges and being secured thereto, said outer iiange and a portion of said web intermediate said outer ange and said intermediate iiange being embedded in said core, said inner Harige and a portion of the web intermediate said inner iiange and the inner ange projecting inwardly from said wail, the spacing between lsaid outer ange and said slots being equal to substantially one-half of the thickness of said wall, whereby the inner flanges of said Ibearns are adapted for mounting equipment.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 968,512 Praray Aug. 23, 1910 1,265,990 Benner May 14, 1918 1,284,758 Olson Nov, 12, 1918 1,768,626 Pedersen July 1, 1930 2,172,766 Kuhner Sept. 12, 1.939 2,554,418 Mortensen May 22, i951 2,896,271 'Kloote et al. July 28, 1959 2,927,665 'Haut Mar. 8, 1960 2,962,133 Kivett et a1. Nov. 29, l1960 2,969,618 Ratner Ian. 31, 1961 

1. IN A LIGHTWEIGHT PORTABLE SHELTER COMPRISING FOUR SIDE WALLS, A TOP WALL AND A BOTTOM WALL, THE NOVEL FEATURE WHICH COMPRISES A SIDE WALL CONSTRUCTION, SAID WALL CONSTRUCTION COMPRISING AN OUTER FACING, AN INNER FACING, SAID INNER FACING BEING CONSTITUTED BY A PLURALITY OF PANELS, AND A LIGHTWEIGHT CELLULAR CORE DISPOSED BETWEEN SAID FACINGS, SAID CORE BEING ADHERED TO SAID FACINGS TO FORM A RIGID WALL, A PLURALITY OF VERTICALLY EXTENDING MODIFIED IBEAMS, EACH OF SAID I-BEAMS COMPRISING A WEB, AN INNER TRANSVERSE FLANGE AND AN OUTER TRANSVERSE FLANGE DISPOSED AT OPPOSITE EDGES OF SAID WEB, AND AN INTERMEDIATE TRANSVERSE FLANGE DISPOSED INTERMEDIATE SAID INNER AND OUTER FLANGES, SAID INTERMEDIATE FLANGE OF EACH OF SAID I-BEAMS BEING SECURED TO AN EDGE OF ONE OF SAID INNER FACING PANELS, SAID OUTER FLANGE AND A PORTION OF SAID WEB INTERMEDIATE SAID OUTER FLANGE AND SAID INTERMEDIATE FLANGE BEING EMBEDDED IN SAID CORE, SAID INNER FLANGE AND THE INTERMEDIATE FLANGE PROJECTING INWARDLY FROM SAID WALL, WHEREBY THE INNER FLANGES OF SAID I-BEAMS ARE ADAPTED FOR MOUNTING EQUIPMENT. 